Dragon Weather: Obsidian Chronicles

The first novel in Lawrence Watt-Evans' Obsidian Chronicles: Dragon Weather.Arlian had lived his entire life on the Smoking Mountain - the stony ground, jagged peaks, and black glass were all he had ever known. But then came dragon weather: Oppressive heat, dark and angry clouds...weather that lured the dragons from their caverns deep beneath the earth.

Eden's Gate: The Reborn: A LitRPG Adventure, Book 1

When Gunnar Long is transported into the first fully-immersive virtual MMORPG, he finds himself in a new world filled with magic, mystery, and adventure. No more 9-to-5 job. No more studio apartment. No more reality TV. Finally, he's in a place where he can call home, a place with people he can call friends. But as more people want to trade their real world lives to get inside Eden's Gate, the government of the outside world wants the "game" shut down at all costs.

Wild Wastes

In The Waste, every fantasy creature, fairytale demon, or mythological monster exists. From orcs, to neriads, ogres, trolls, wraiths, elves, harpies, and even beastmen. They all exist, and all despise humankind. In the ruins of the west and east coasts, new governments have arisen. With new jobs. Vince is a Ranger, a profession whose sole job duty is surviving in the waste, and taking missions from the Ranger Guild. Be it courier services, escorts, or simply exploring tombs and cities.

The Path of Flames

A war fueled by the dark powers of forbidden sorcery is about to engulf the Ascendant Empire. Asho sees his liege, the Lady Kyferin, and her meager forces banished to an infamous ruin. Beset by tragedy and betrayal, demons and an approaching army, the fate of the Kyferins hangs by the slenderest of threads. Asho realizes that their sole hope of survival may lie hidden within the depths of his scarred soul - a secret that could reverse their fortunes and reveal the truth behind the war that wracks their empire.

Magic Casement: A Man of His Word, Book 1

Princess Inos lived an idyllic life in her fathers' sleepy, backwater kingdom, and she was best friends with her childhood companion, the stableboy, Rap. But when a prophecy seemed to say Inos should be married, she was exiled to the Impire to learn to be a lady. She was far away when Rap's magical talents began to emerge, and it was he who told her of the fate awaiting them both.

Hero of Thera

Be a hero in the ultimate game. Are you a top-rated gamer? Then you might have the skills to play the Game...where players are sponsored by actual demon lords, gods and goddesses, or Lovecraftian nightmares. Enter Thera, a real kingdom at the crossroads of many other worlds, but with all the augmented-reality interfaces, character progression, and game mechanics that players know and love.

The Dark Ability

Rsiran is a disappointment to his family, gifted with the ability to Slide. It is a dark magic, one where he can transport himself wherever he wants, but using it will only turn him into the thief his father fears. Forbidden from Sliding, he's apprenticed under his father as a blacksmith where lorcith, a rare, precious metal with arcane properties, calls to him, seducing him into forming forbidden blades. When discovered, he's banished, sentenced indefinitely to the mines of Ilphaesn Mountain.

The Land: Founding: A LitRPG Saga: Chaos Seeds, Book 1

In The Land: Founding, the first volume of the award winning Chaos Seeds saga, demons and angels toy with the lives of unwitting humans. Gamers sign away their souls in unread contracts as they log online each day. One at a time, these people are stolen, mind and soul, into a world of magic and adventure that operates by the same laws as the game they worshiped at for years.

The Trapped Mind Project: Emerilia, Book 1

Austin Zane leaves behind his CEO position with RB Corp to play Dave, a half-dwarf in the virtual reality game Emerilia, trying to escape his life. What Dave doesn't know is that Earth as he knows it is really a virtual reality simulation and Emerilia is a world imbued with futuristic technologies to mimic early MMORPGs.

All That Glitters: Stavin DragonBlessed, Book 1

This is the story of Stavin Kel'Aniston. A boy trained as a warrior, he serves his people as a caravan guard to obtain gold for their community. Stavin earned dragon-scale armor from the dragon on the mountain for his bravery, but the gift of the dragon comes at a price. Thieves, brigands, and ne'er-do-wells of every kind are attracted to Stavin. As the summer passes, Stavin fights for his life and the honor of his name.

Gamer for Life: Alpha World, Book 1

Seamus is facing life in prison without parole. While doing his time, he's given an option by the Department of Justice and the biggest virtual game maker around, Mindblown Entertainment. If he will help them test long-term immersion, he will get the chance to play the latest game from Mindblown - Alpha World. All he has to do is sign away his legal rights and sign an NDA.

Son of Thunder: Thunder's War, Book 1

In the country of Sohlgain, all young men are expected to chain a dragon and claim its charge. For Berun Toirnach, the eldest son of the nation's ruler, this means venturing onto a dragon reserve and hunting a wild dragon. A tradition his family has upheld for generations. The aftermath of this hunt will shape Berun's life. He is given a position as a Thunder Priest and gifted the power to control lightning, Berun must decide what to do with this new power.

Last Horizon: Beta: Last Horizon Series, Book 1

Advances in technology have led to the creation of ever more realistic virtual reality games, but now Full Immersion Virtual Reality is finally coming true. Join David and his oldest friends as they sign up to beta test the first game of its kind. Last Horizon will give the old gamers the chance to live out one last adventure together.

Lion's Quest: Dual Wield

With Leo's commitment to Arnacript finalized, the champ announces his retirement to the world and prepares to work full-time on Ohlavar Quest. The challenges in the game world become steeper as Leo sets his eyes on the first of many artifacts, and he joins a dungeon exploration group in an effort to acquire the piece. But forces in the real world don't want the champ to retire from Astafar Unlimited, and they will do whatever it takes to get him back. Even if it means killing his parents.

Son of Soron: Stoneblood Saga, Book 1

Soron and Velaina left the royal life behind, with all its intrigues and dangers, for the small village of Elderwood. For 14 years, they lived a peaceful and simple life, until one day their son Nathan showed signs of possessing magical abilities, and all their plans were thrown into question. Before they could share their secret pasts with their son, a tragic series of missteps by an ambitious duke leads to tragedy. Nathan's quest finds him pitted against deadly bandits, vicious mythical creatures, and a northern king who will either kill him or call him grandson.

Into the Abyss: Demons of Astlan Series, Book 1

It turns out, the "Demon Weed" actually is a gateway drug! Who knew? Tom Perkinje certainly didn't. He had never smoked anything in his life, but as the new kid in town trying to make friends, he foolishly let his new buddy Reggie talk him into trying a joint that he'd picked up from a new dealer. Before he knew it, Tom was having a seriously bad trip; a total out-of-body experience where the world had dissolved around him.

Cast Under an Alien Sun: Destiny's Crucible, Book 1

Joe Colsco boarded a flight from San Francisco to Chicago to attend a national chemistry meeting. He would never set foot on Earth again. On planet Anyar, Joe is found unconscious on a beach of a large island inhabited by humans where the level of technology is similar to Earth circa 1700. He awakes amid strangers speaking an unintelligible language and struggles to accept losing his previous life and finding a place in a society with different customs, needing a way to support himself and not knowing a single soul.

Super Sales on Super Heroes

In a world full of super powers, Felix has a pretty crappy one. He has the ability to modify any item he owns. To upgrade anything. Sounds great on paper. Almost like a video game. Except that the amount of power it takes to actually change, modify, or upgrade anything worthwhile is beyond his abilities. With that in mind, Felix settled into a normal life. A normal job. His entire world changes when the city he lives in is taken over by a super villain. Becoming a country of one city. A city state.

The Way of the Clan: World of Valdira, Book 1

A world full of adventures, ancient mysteries, and monsters hungering for your demise. A world where anyone can achieve their greatest dream and become who they wish - a successful trader, a wise anchorite, a brave warrior, or a battle mage who can control disastrous elemental powers. But don't expect that the path to your dream will be simple! The path to the top is long, if you can ever reach it.

Beginnings: Adventures on Terra, Book 1

Armon Ellington is 19 year old kid that always felt out of place. He's an orphan, a gamer, and a role playing game geek. When he dies after a 72 hour gaming marathon, instead of going to an afterlife he's transported to a new world governed by rules that are eerily similar to the RPG games he loves. On this new world, Terra, he can be anything he wants, a warrior, mage, or even a crafter. Only, Armon wants more than that, he also wants friends and family.

Ring of Promise: A LitRPG novel: Elements of Wrath Online, Book 1

Unlike in real life, Max is pretty good at playing games, so when a new limited-time dungeon opens up in the virtual reality game he plays, boasting a huge cash prize, Max knows he needs to try and complete it if he wants to be able to pay rent this month. Fortunately, the only guild strong enough to attempt to take it on before the timer runs out needs a tank.

Patch 17

A new update arrives to the ultra-popular online game, Realm of Arkon. With Patch 17, the level of immersion experienced by players in their gaming capsules has made virtual reality indistinguishable from the real world. But every gamer's dream becomes a nightmare for Roman Kozhevnikov after he gets confined to Arkon against his will. And not just to Arkon, but to its deadliest zone - Demon Grounds. Playing - or rather living - as his character Krian, it's not just about survival for Roman.

Path of The Calm: Saga of The Wolf, Book 1

The young world of Onneron has known peace for years. But now unease has spread across the land as disagreements between factions threaten each other's way of life. The Brothers of the Onneron College dedicate themselves to higher learning and to mastering Paths of magic. They wish to remain independent, but the Onneron Church feels threatened by their ability to heal and vies to take control of their order. Treace, bullied and belittled, is unaware of the plan his deceased father has for him.

Wizard in a Witchy World

Modern day wizard Felix Slade knows better than to meddle in the lives of witches. But when a chance encounter with a beautiful witch, Gabriella, sparks a vision of her demise at the hand of a werewolf, he knows he must act. To make matters worse, his vision reveals feelings he has for this woman he's only seen from afar, and in that moment his life is changed forever. Trouble has been brewing in sleepy Leotown, but explodes when Felix witnesses the gruesome murder of Gabriella's coven leader and ends up number one on a short list of suspects.

Publisher's Summary

Wallie Smith can feel the pain. He goes to the hospital, remembers the doctors and the commotion, but when he wakes up it all seems like a dream. However, if that was a dream how do you explain waking up in another body and in another world? Little Wallie finds himself in the physique of a barbarian swordsman, accompanied by both an eccentric priest babbling about the Goddess and a voluptuous slave girl. Is this a rude awakening or a dream come true?

What in the world will Wallie do now that he's found himself stranded in a strange realm? Well it just so happens that the Goddess is in need of a swordsman. It won't be easy but if he succeeds he will have everything he wants. If he doesn't, things could get ugly.

Wallie is reluctant but sees his chance. If only he had the faintest clue as to the adventure he is about to unleash! If only he could imagine the forces that will be out to vanquish him!

The plot was straight-forward, easy to follow, and was enjoyable to listen to.

Any additional comments?

If you are looking for an enjoyable story, you might like this one. It is not full of intrigue, or complicated, or full of politics. It is a simply story, simply told. Having said that, I would say that I enjoyed listening, both to this book, and to the following two books in the series. The story isn't complicated; It doesn't arrive at the end you would think it will come to from the beginning, but the ending was not terrible either. All in all, I enjoyed listening to it. <br/><br/>Before you decide, though, please find out what other reviewers think. All things aren't for everyone. I always like recommending that the reader considers other reviews before deciding.

I strongly suspect that this is a rewrite of some ancient Incan story, mixed with the book of jobe,with a pinch of fantasy soul translocation. Well written and a whole lot of fun. I have to get up tomorrow at 5.30am, it is now 11pm and I am downloading the next book. Don't you just hate those sort of authors. Elol

This is the first book in a series that takes you through a world of swords and sorcerers that is well thought out, with characters that grow on you. Overall, I enjoyed the story, but felt the pace moved a bit slow. <br/><br/>Without giving away any spoilers, by the start of the second book I was seeing some obvious plot points that took the characters in the story the entire volume to recognize as important. I am not sure I have the patience to wade through the third volume to see how it all ends.<br/><br/>Donald Corren does a great job with the narration. <br/><br/>If you are a fan of the "swords and sorcerers" genera, you will probably enjoy this series of books.

I say its mediocre depending on taste because I tend to lean toward more graphic novels with gritty characters. This book has a character with scruples & that plays a part in the overall book. I don't think I will end up reading the other 3 books after this because I'm in the Cornwell, Martin, Ambercrombie type of violence & character depiction. I will give KUDOS to the author writing a enjoyable book while avoiding mass violence (considering everyone is running around with swords) & the language is not vulgar at all... from a literary standpoint Duncan didn't need to add any of that extra descriptions to make the book better, although I think that most books that take place during the time when archaic weapons were used (swords, axes, etc....) should be relatively graphic is coarse because before the invention of guns, pulling a trigger is much different than taking a battle axe to someones head or a sword causing real life problems during large battles... like bodies & blood lol

The book was not bad, not necessarily in my category of more than medicore but like I said before, it could be great for those readers who appreciate the ability to write an interesting story without needing to use the 'extra's' I mentioned above

I thought that the basic idea for the story was a good one and fairly original. I just felt that there was a lot more that could be done with that idea. I'll not put any spoilers in here, but I have to say that with Wally's old memories and talents, he should have figured things out much faster. I'm speaking of the entire series here, but even in the first book there weree things a person from our world should have been able to sort out on their own. In the second boook, I figured out what was going on and I don't even have the chemical background that Wally does. There seemed to be some plot holes that Duncan could have filled in with a little more thought and effort.

Was The Reluctant Swordsman worth the listening time?

I think so. Despite it's flaws it is still a good story. It is fun and fresh and exciting. If you have a credit you're looking o burn, go ahead and pick it up.

I'd only get another if I heard good things, read a good book in that series. But I'd only get another book in this series if it was on special discount.

What could Dave Duncan have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Actually have the adventure begin. The whole first book is the action I would expect in the first act of any adventure book. The whole thing was all about the hero preparing to leave and ended with him finally leaving.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narrator was actually pretty good, I just don't think this particular book was good enough material.

I read the reviews on this book and I got a good feeling for the series. I am always reluctant to speak against some of the reviewers I follow. After all I follow them because they seem to like the same book choices I do. I have to say though this time the reviews were wrong.

Dave Duncan did not build the characters or the world at all. The opening goes like this, in todays time a man named Smith dies. Three chapters later you find out that the dead guy was sharing the body of a Swordsman. There is very little character building for Mr. Smith/Swordsman. The swordsman had also died so that Mr. Smith could take over his body. A small god then gave Mr. Smith all the knowledge he needed to be a master swordsman. Poof there you go. I am a big believer in knowledge about the characters. Part of my enjoyment is deciding if a character would make a certian decision or not. If the author fails to develop the characters personality, I do not know enough to make that call. I love the story line itself but I did not like where the author went with the story.

Superb narration. This is a fun series, told in 3rd person, with 4 books total. I usually avoid stories with time-portals and/or world-jumping, but the author fit that trope so neatly into the plot that it is often almost unnoticeable.

The books are classified as fantasy, but I'd called it off-world fiction or fantasy-light. There are no elves, giants, dwarves, etc. Just humans, and odd animals, like the camel-dog-horse. And a river that has no source apparently, and appears to loop around, reconfiguring itself like Chutes and Ladders.

This series is set on another planet, called simply "The World" — a place the goddess watches over. Her people are stuck in the medieval Age of Legends, without writing. Stuck in the age of sagas and sutras and storytellers, where mankind makes the most of speech through minstrels and heralds, and where a good memory is a huge advantage.

The goddess, who is the River, transplants the soul and memories of Wallie Smith, a dying young petrochemical engineer on Earth, into the body of the dying Lord Shonsu, master swordsman here on The River. She gives Wallie a task to accomplish, encapsulated in a riddle he must unravel. It's a difficult task, but he's not alone, as the goddess sends him six helpers. Wonderful cast of characters! Together, they must interpret the vague riddle and accomplish the mission.

Seven ranks of swordsmen and the color of their kilt:Level 1 is called a novice, wearing a white kilt.Level 2 is called apprentice, wearing a yellow kilt.Level 3 is called swordsman, wearing brown. (At this level, you can own things.)Level 4 is called adept, wearing orange.Level 5 is called master, wearing red.Level 6 is called "honorable" wearing green.Level 7 is called "lord" wearing blue.